A Consumer-Centric Shift in Medical & Life Sciences

ORBIS

Hormone Analyzer

The Challenge

The Solution

We’re living in a time where self-care and at-home health monitoring are reshaping the healthcare landscape. For the medical and life sciences industries, this marks a turning point. The traditional B2B approach - focused on clinical settings and healthcare providers - is giving way to a rapidly growing demand for consumer-focused solutions.

This shift - from traditional B2B to a more B2C approach - isn’t just about reaching new markets. It’s about reimagining how medical products are designed, marketed, and seamlessly woven into everyday life. The intersection of design and healthcare is where this evolution becomes most apparent, offering an opportunity for innovation that can transform lives while keeping pace with consumer expectations.

A New Competitive Landscape: Where Healthcare Meets Consumer Tech

Healthcare companies are stepping into a new competitive arena, traditionally dominated by consumer tech giants like Apple, Samsung, and Bose. These leaders have redefined how users interact with technology through seamless, culturally resonant designs. Remember how Apple turned the humble desktop computer into a design icon with the iMac? The same opportunity now exists for medical devices.

The challenge is clear: while medical advancements lead in precision, design and user experience often lags behind. Today’s consumers demand more - they want their healthcare tools to be as sleek and intuitive as their smartphones. By prioritizing design as a strategic differentiator, the medical industry can not only stay competitive but redefine what healthcare experiences look and feel like.

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Designing Beyond Symptoms: A Holistic Approach to Health and Wellness

Traditionally, healthcare has focused on treating symptoms in isolation, often overlooking the broader context of lifestyle, mental health, and nutrition. By contrast, consumer tech thrives on addressing the whole person. Medical companies now have an opportunity to shift their perspective, integrating connected technologies that empower users to take charge of their well-being.

Take preventive care and self-monitoring tools, for example. When designed with a holistic approach, these tools can inspire healthier habits and more balanced lives. At FLUID, we see design not just as a means to improve usability but as a gateway to a more complete vision of wellness.

A Design Vision That Challenges the Norm

We envisioned ORBIS as an in-home hormone monitoring device system that underlines a clear visible transformation from the usual soft, approachable and organic form factors we are used to seeing in medical device design. Its monolithic, minimalist and luxurious aesthetic design emphasizes our thesis that future medical devices can be more than applications for symptomatic treatment. Self-care becomes a lifestyle, and technology becomes a daily experience.

The hardware serves as a sophisticated yet unobtrusive vessel for an intuitive, human-centered digital experience. By transforming complex data into meaningful insights, ORBIS ensures that users can easily understand and engage with their health. High-quality materials, premium display interactions, and timeless design elevate medical and preventive care into a more refined experience.

By collecting two key biological samples - blood and saliva - using painless sampling with two separate devices, it is possible to obtain comprehensive insights into overall hormone levels.

Designing for Empowered Hormone Health

Hormones play a vital role in regulating nearly every function in our bodies, from metabolism and energy levels to mood, sleep, and reproductive health. When hormone levels are out of balance, they can impact overall well-being, often in ways that go unnoticed.

Regular testing empowers individuals to understand their bodies, make informed choices, and shift from reactive treatment to proactive, personalized care.  

Here are three guiding principles shaping our vision:

Destigmatizing personal health care: Investing in at-home health monitoring should feel as rewarding as upgrading your living space. By seamlessly integrating into home environments, the device becomes more than functional - it’s a sophisticated, elegant addition to daily life, blending style with purpose.
Simplicity through thoughtful design: Complex systems demand simple, intuitive interactions. Guided processes and multisensory feedback create a sensual, manual, and coherent experience, ensuring every step feels natural and engaging.
A gateway to holistic health: The hardware is designed to connect with broader ecosystems, extending into wearables and apps. This integration provides a complete view of hormonal health over time, linking key insights about stress, sleep, diet, and lifestyle to support meaningful, informed decisions.

Redefining Wellness Through Technology

Technology is the backbone of modern health ecosystems. From wearables tracking stress levels to AI delivering personalized insights, the future is all about connected care. When tools like the hormone analyzer integrate seamlessly into this ecosystem, they bridge the gap between raw data and actionable, life-enhancing decisions.

This isn’t just about monitoring - it’s about empowering users. Whether it’s through tracking hormones, sleep quality, or daily habits, these tools inspire better choices, fostering healthier, more mindful lifestyles.

A Call to Action: Designing for a Consumer-Driven Future in Healthcare

The shift to consumer-focused innovation is no longer optional for the medical and life sciences industries - it’s essential. By combining clinical expertise with user-centric design, these industries can create products that resonate with today’s tech-savvy, wellness-conscious consumers.The future of healthcare lies in meeting people where they are - at home, in their routines, and on their terms.

Through bold ideas and thoughtful design, FLUID is ready to lead this transformation, crafting healthcare experiences that inspire, empower, and make a real difference. Are you ready to reimagine the future of health? Let’s shape it together.